Flood water is not the same problem as a burst pipe, and treating it as one is why people get ill and why buildings fail to dry. Water that has come across the ground carries sewage, fuel, agricultural run off and whatever was in the street, so a flooded house is a contamination problem first and a drying problem second. What to do after a flood in your house therefore starts with safety and with a hard line on what is thrown away.
What to do after a flood in your house: before you go back in
Treat the building as unsafe until proven otherwise. Power stays off until an electrician has cleared the panel and the circuits that were wetted; gas appliances that were submerged are treated as compromised until a technician passes them. Wear boots, gloves and eye protection, and expect the floor to be slippery and to hide holes. Photograph everything before you move it, including the water line on the walls, because that line is the single most useful piece of claim evidence you will ever take.
What has to go
Porous material that was under flood water does not come back: carpet and pad, upholstered furniture, mattresses, particle board furniture, insulation, and drywall to above the water line. Food, including anything in a sealed container that was submerged, goes. Cosmetics and medicine go. Timber, concrete, tile and metal generally clean and dry. The rule is not how dirty it looks; it is whether the material can be cleaned all the way through and dried, and porous materials that held contaminated water cannot.
Flood damage cleaning and drying, in that order
Muck out the solids, then remove what is going, then clean and disinfect what remains, then dry. Drying before cleaning simply bakes the contamination into the structure. Drying is to a measured moisture content with air movers and dehumidifiers, logged daily, and it takes longer after a flood because the assembly is saturated rather than wetted. Do not close up walls, replace insulation or lay new flooring until the readings say the structure is dry, whatever the schedule pressure is.
Water damage vs flood damage on the policy
This is the distinction that decides who pays. Most homeowners policies cover sudden and accidental water escaping inside the building, and exclude water that rose from outside. Rising water is covered by a separate flood policy, with its own adjuster, its own forms and its own deadlines. A single storm often produces both, and the apportionment is argued. Photograph the water line and the point of entry, keep the two claims in separate files, and tell each adjuster the other claim exists.
Questions people ask about flood cleaning
Is flood water dangerous?
Treat it as contaminated. Flood water routinely carries sewage, fuel and agricultural run off, which is why porous materials it touched are discarded rather than cleaned and why protective equipment is used during the clean up.
What do I throw away after a flood?
Carpet and pad, upholstered furniture, mattresses, particle board, insulation, drywall to above the water line, and all food, medicine and cosmetics that were exposed. Hard, non porous materials are cleaned.
What is the difference between water damage and flood damage?
Water damage generally means water escaping inside the building and is a homeowners peril. Flood means water rising from outside and is covered by a separate flood policy with its own rules and deadlines.
How long does a flooded house take to dry?
Longer than a pipe escape, because the assembly is saturated rather than wetted. It is driven by measured readings rather than by a number of days, and closing up before the readings allow it causes mould.